Bavaria Match 38
Bavaria · J&J Design · 2003
Updated
The Bavaria Match 38 is a 11.39 m displacement racing yacht designed by J&J Design and built by Bavaria, first launched in 2003. It races in Class B. Across the measured fleet it goes better than its own numbers promise, ahead of 18% of the designs it races against.
Goes better than its own measurements promise, and does it better than 18% of the boats it races against.
76th of 92 in its class.
This design has been found in real race results — 33 starts across 19 events — not only in measurement files.
Length
11.39 m
37′ 4″
Beam
3.69 m
Draft
2.20 m
Displacement
6.8 t
Sail area
80 m²
On the podium
Where a Bavaria Match 38 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
15%
of 33 starts by 7 boats
Wins
3%
Read from 33 starts by 7 boats between 2013 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Bavaria Match 38 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
151 Miglia - Trofeo Cetilar2026
Marstrand Big Boat Race2026
Island Offshore - Race to the Arctic2026- Oslofjorden Rundt2026
- Regata Brindisi-Corfù2026
Raced one we are missing?
Report a regattaRound the buoys, or offshore
A short windward-leeward and a night at sea ask different things of a boat. Here is how this one does in each.
Round the buoys
25%
of these races end on the podium
Offshore & coastal
—
Not enough data yet: 9 races over 10 NM carry a published distance.
Who she races against
The designs a Bavaria Match 38 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Also met, too few times for a figure:
Comet 36 (7 meetings), J/105 (7 meetings), Arcona 370 (7 meetings), Sinergia 40 (6 meetings), King 40 (6 meetings), XR 41 (6 meetings), Mat 122 (6 meetings), X-99 (6 meetings), Salona 37 (6 meetings), X-332 (6 meetings), X-40 (6 meetings), 11 Metre (6 meetings), Grand Soleil 43 (Carkeek) (5 meetings), Comet 41 (6 meetings), Bonin 358 (5 meetings), First 34.7 (6 meetings), Corby 33 (5 meetings), Luffe 40 (5 meetings), Dehler 38 (Judel/Vrolijk) (5 meetings), Salona 40 (5 meetings), Sun Fast 3600 (4 meetings), Swan 42 (7 meetings), Farr 40 (4 meetings), Grand Soleil 46 (Carkeek) (4 meetings), Elan 37 (4 meetings), Sun Fast 3200 (3 meetings)
Some of the boats it races against
How the Bavaria Match 38 has fared against each of them, boat against boat on corrected time. Ordered by how often the two meet, not by who wins.
Speed at every angle
The shape of this design's speed, drawn from the measured fleet. Pick a wind and watch it stretch.
Upwind VMG
5.49
38°
Beam reach
8.62
90°
Broad reach
9.44
135°
Downwind VMG
8.10
170°
Speed in knots at 20 knots of true wind. Green marks the angles that pay: the closest useful beat and the deepest run worth sailing.
Where it wins and where it pays
Every boat is judged against its own measurements — length, weight, sail area. The quicker those say it should be, the more it has to deliver just to break even. Going fast is not enough: it has to go faster than its own numbers promised.
It does most things without giving much away. It rewards preparation and crew work more than it rewards picking the right day.
Where it gains
Its best ground is to windward in a strong breeze, where it goes better than its measurements say it should, and by a margin worth having.
Where it pays
It falls short cracked off in a strong breeze, giving away time it never gets back. That is a displacement hull working to its designed speed.
Above the line it delivers more than promised and gains on the fleet. Below, it falls short. Move the wind: plenty of boats sit on one side in the light and the other when it blows.
Full width is 0.4 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the beam reach.
How fast is a Bavaria Match 38
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.48 | 4.79 | 5.35 | 5.49 |
| 52° | 5.32 | 6.96 | 7.52 | 7.67 |
| 60° | 5.61 | 7.17 | 7.70 | 7.90 |
| 75° | 5.83 | 7.34 | 7.90 | 8.28 |
| 90° | 5.74 | 7.43 | 8.02 | 8.62 |
| 110° | 5.72 | 7.57 | 8.34 | 8.98 |
| 120° | 5.53 | 7.47 | 8.34 | 9.41 |
| 135° | 4.95 | 7.08 | 8.08 | 9.44 |
| 150° | 4.13 | 6.34 | 7.67 | 8.89 |
| Run VMG | 3.58 | 5.49 | 6.85 | 8.10 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Nearly all carry a folding propeller. Crew weight is declared around 720 kg.
Rigging
Bavaria Match 38 rig and sail dimensions
A Bavaria Match 38 carries 13.55 m of mainsail hoist on a 5.00 m boom, a forestay 14.30 m above the deck and a 5.19 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 19 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 82 to 125 m² depending on bowsprit and set-up. Before ordering a sail, read the figure on your own measurement record rather than the typical one for the design.